But what the final Senate bill’s language will contain is still murky. It will be different from the version that passed the Senate Ag Committee March 1 because three of the nine Democratic senators on the Ag panel supporting the markup measure did so on expectations the language would change once the bill got to the full Senate floor.
Reports have surfaced that the bill could be taken up on the Senate floor as soon as this week. On Tuesday Senate Ag Chairman Pat Roberts, R-Kan., said Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., wants to have debate and a vote on the measure next week. Roberts said his goal is to have a bipartisan agreement reached before the end of this week. He would not detail any of the possible compromises needed to garner what he said was the needed support of “at least 20 Democrats.”
Four Senate Democrats filed legislation last week that would make labeling mandatory. The bill pushed by Roberts is voluntary.
Roberts said he is willing to work with Democrats on a floor amendment that addresses their concerns. Democrats have stressed that any legislation preempting state laws must contain a pathway to mandatory labeling.
Under the Democrats’ mandatory labeling measure, manufacturers would be able to choose from one of four options for updating their nutrition labels to show the product contains GE foods, including:
· Using parenthesis following the relevant ingredient to indicate the ingredient is “Genetically Engineered.”
· Using an asterisk next to an ingredient with an explanation at the bottom of the ingredients list.
· Using a “catch all” statement at the bottom of the ingredient list stating the product was “produced with genetic engineering.”
· Using a symbol developed by FDA in consultation with manufacturers that would “clearly and conspicuously” disclose the presence of genetically engineered ingredients.